"What... what?" Fu Hua was stunned, and the others were equally shocked.
Lin Ling, too, realized she had just said something over the top in her excitement. Her face flushed, but not wanting to lose her composure, she quickly cleared her throat and pretended to be calm.
Oh no! Did I just confess to Immortal Fu Hua in my excitement?
Well, it was bound to happen someday.
Let's just consider this practice for confessing to more people in the future.
Fu Hua regained her composure and calmly addressed the white-haired girl in front of her, "Lin Ling, thank you for your affection, but I'm sorry. You're a good person, but I don't have any such thoughts right now."
Despite her calm demeanor, Lin Ling keenly noticed a slight blush on Fu Hua's face.
[System Prompt: Host has successfully made Fu Hua slightly embarrassed. Arm strength increased by 1 kg.]
Lin Ling thought: Even though Immortal Fu Hua is a battle-hardened veteran, she clearly has no romantic experience.
Unlike the others who haven't become Herrschers yet, Fu Hua has lost most of her power due to her broken Sword Mantra and amnesia. This means her strength still exists in essence.
She should take advantage of the current early stage of the Honkai Impact 3rd storyline and make the most of this opportunity.
"Haha, it's alright." Lin Ling smiled at Fu Hua. "I'll make you fall for me soon enough. By the way, even though the principal has already told you about me, let me formally introduce myself. Hello, Fu Hua. My name is Lin Ling."
"..." Fu Hua remained silent for a moment before changing the subject. "Lin Ling sounds like a name from Shenzhou."
"Haha, so we're from the same hometown. Ah, two fellow countrymen shedding tears of joy~"
"..." After another pause, Fu Hua couldn't help but say, "Lin Ling, can you please let go of my hand?"
"Oh, sorry. Your hands are so soft and smooth; I couldn't bear to let go."
Despite apologizing, Lin Ling didn't release her grip and even gave Fu Hua's hand a couple of extra squeezes.
Fu Hua smiled kindly, "You even know lines from the Classic of Poetry. It seems more likely that we're from the same hometown."
As she spoke, Lin Ling felt an immense, irresistible force from Fu Hua's hand, easily breaking free from her grasp.
Rubbing her slightly sore arm, Lin Ling couldn't help but marvel.
As expected of Jingwei, she's incredibly strong. How long will I have to flirt with her to become this powerful?
"Hi there, new roommate!" Kiana cheerfully greeted Lin Ling. "I'm Kiana Kaslana. Just call me Kiana."
"Alright, Ms. Paramecium." Lin Ling responded immediately.
"Para... paramecium? What does that mean? Why call me that?" Kiana was puzzled.
Bronya interjected, "Dumb Kiana."
"What?" Kiana's smile turned into a pout as she glared at the short girl hugging a Homu doll, "Why are you calling me dumb again, Bronya!?"
"Bronya is not calling you dumb," Bronya explained calmly. "Bronya is helping explain that 'paramecium' means you are an idiot."
Kiana turned her aggrieved gaze to the new girl, "Is that true, Lin Ling?"
"No, Kiana." Lin Ling hesitated briefly before stepping forward and taking Kiana's hands in hers. "Paramecium is an affectionate nickname, like how couples call each other silly or foolish. So, I'll call you Paramecium from now on."
"Well... it does sound kind of cute when you put it that way," Kiana scratched her head, but then added, "But couldn't we choose something better?"
"Paramecium sounds cute, and it's a matching double-word nickname like mine. It's perfect."
"Matching?" Kiana tilted her head in confusion.
"Alright, alright." A tall girl with purple hair, 172 cm in height, stepped between Kiana and Lin Ling, subtly separating their hands. She smiled at Lin Ling, "Hello, Lin Ling. I'm Raiden Mei. You can call me Mei."
"Hello, Mei..." Lin Ling thought about how to tease Mei.
If I say, 'I can't do anything!' or 'Pots and pans! Submit to me!' will she get mad? Probably not. From their current state, it seems we haven't reached the point in the story where Mei becomes heavily teased by the fandom.
What should I do?
But just then, Mei pulled Kiana away, "Kiana, stop chatting and come help me. Let's make something delicious to welcome our new member."
After Mei and Kiana left, only Bronya and Fu Hua remained in the living room. Lin Ling turned her attention to the latter.
Fu Hua, noticing Lin Ling's gaze, quickly said, "I'll go help too." She then retreated to the kitchen.
This left Lin Ling alone with the doll-hugging Bronya.
"I'm Bronya Zaychik." Bronya briefly introduced herself and then sat down silently on the sofa.
"Bronya, you're so cute. I wish I could keep you as a pet," Lin Ling tried her usual teasing.
Unlike Theresa, Bronya replied expressionlessly, "Bronya refuses."
Hmm... She forgot Bronya's emotional system was damaged, making her physically incapable of emotional fluctuations. This will be tricky.
"Hey, newbie." Bronya handed Lin Ling a game controller. "Want to play a game?"
"Well, okay."
Since teasing Bronya wasn't working, Lin Ling decided to play a game to relax and think about how to better utilize her system's abilities.
However, Lin Ling quickly found herself repeatedly defeated, experiencing over a hundred consecutive losses. Even though she had been a self-proclaimed gaming expert in her previous life, Bronya was practically unbeatable.
"This is too much. She's like a cheat code in human form!"
...
After a while, the door opened again. A red-haired woman entered.
"Ah, so many things to do today, I'm exhausted... Oh, something smells good! Did Mei cook something nice?"
A small girl about the same height as Bronya followed her in, "It smells like bitter melon too."
"Kiana, stop snacking," Mei's voice came from the kitchen. "The principal and Himeko-sensei are back. It's time to serve the food."
The small dorm was soon filled with a warm and cozy atmosphere...